BetStars Reaches Data and Marketing Deal with the NBA

BetStars parent company The Stars Group has announced a multi-year partnership with the NBA involving data rights and cross-promotional efforts between both organizations. This is the first deal of its kind for BetStars, which operates an online sportsbook in New Jersey and is in the process of securing its place in Pennsylvania.

The deal makes BetStars “an authorized gaming operator of the NBA in the U.S.” and grants BetStars rights to use official NBA imagery on the betting company’s various digital platforms. The NBA has also agreed to promote BetStars across its own digital assets, including NBA TV, NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA social media platforms.

The deal also grants BetStars access to official NBA betting data for use in settling wagers and managing in-play betting markets. Online sportsbooks generally do not need to rely on official data to determine the outcomes of standard wagers, but that data is crucial for managing the short-term types of wagers in-play betting offers during NBA games.

The Stars Group enjoys widespread name recognition in the European market, but still has plenty of work to do stateside as it establishes its brand on US soil. This deal should contribute significantly to that effort as it puts the Stars name in front of engaged sports fans on the NBA’s digital properties. That’s not to mention the advantage real-time data straight from the league gives BetStars in running its own in-play NBA betting markets.

Additionally, BetStars and the NBA will collaborate on responsible gambling and information sharing in order to combat problem gambling and corruption. This type of deal is new for BetStars, but the NBA has been here before with a similar agreement it signed with MGM Resorts earlier this year.

Matt Primeaux, Senior VP of Strategy & Operations, USA at The Stars Group, said this in a statement:

“We are excited to partner with the NBA to execute on our U.S. strategy. This agreement enables us to use official NBA data and league marks, providing a better experience to our customers, while working with the NBA to protect the integrity of games.”

Here’s what Scott Kaufman-Ross, Head of Fantasy & Gaming, NBA, said about the deal:

“The Stars Group is an accomplished global online gaming leader and we are excited to work with them on their first U.S. sports league partnership. This dynamic partnership will be another way to create authentic fan engagement with league logos and official NBA betting data, while leveraging Stars’ global expertise to further optimize the fan experience.”

New Jersey Showing the Way for Other States

The New Jersey approach to legal sports betting has proven quite effective and lawmakers in other states considering legalization should look to the state for inspiration as they craft their own laws.

Since the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the federal sports betting ban, numerous states have taken up the issue and are in the process of fine-tuning legislation. Some of the early proposals we’ve seen to date seem to miss the mark by enforcing strict limits on who or how many operators may apply for a sports betting license or by imposing excessive fees on betting operators.

Debates over data rights and integrity fees have also popped up in multiple states as the leagues push for certain concessions from lawmakers regarding those issues. The leagues have backed off somewhat on their demands for integrity fees, but the leagues are still pushing for laws that would make it mandatory for operators to buy data from the leagues.

The leagues have argued that integrity fees and data-buying mandates are necessary to protect the integrity of their sports, but we’re not seeing that to be the case in New Jersey. New Jersey betting laws do not include integrity fees or data mandates, but deals such as this one with BetStars and the NBA show there are free market solutions to address all of the leagues’ concerns and still provide them with a pretty penny in new revenue.

In related news, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released updated revenue numbers today. Last month, New Jersey sportsbooks took in another $330 million in wagers to bring the total amount wagered over the past five-and-a-half months to nearly $1 billion.